The Wedding and The Proposal
by LShbm
Summary: a wedding. a proposal is made. lots of Hr/R H/G! please review! disclaimer! i do not own any harry potter characters but the plot is my own! like i said, please review and enjoy! :
1. The Wedding

Hermione Granger stood in her best girlfriend's bedroom. She was wearing a pretty teal dress that matched the other five girls. She was waiting for Ginny, to come out in her wedding dress. Today was Ginny's wedding. Today was the day Ginny Weasley would become Ginny Potter.

Ginny had chosen Hermione to be her maid of honor. Along with Luna Lovegood and three other girls that were in her year at Hogwarts.

"Hermione? I need you to come tie up my dress," Said Ginny. She was wearing a beautiful vintage wedding gown. It had lace and those big buttons that go on fancy wedding dresses. Instead of a zipper the dress had string that was to be tied up in the back. It looked very elegant on her.

"You look beautiful Ginny" Hermione smiled, as her best friends walked out of the bathroom, where she had been changing.

"Oh yes! You do!" said Luna while the other girls "ohh-ed" and "Ahh-ed" in agreement.

Ginny smiled. Her hair was done up in an elegant braid wrapped around her head, with a veil tucked under the front of it and lots of sparkly shimmering clips.

"Is harry ready?" Ginny said to Hermione.

"I'll go check," Hermione responded.

"Can you also find my mum and dad?"

"When I went downstairs they said they would be up in a moment" said one of Ginny's other friends.

Hermione waked up the stairs to the top floor where the men in the grooms' party were getting ready. She knocked on the door.

"Who is it?" said a voice.

"Hermione", Hermione answered

"Come in!" the voice yelled.

In the room we're also five men, each one to escort a bridesmaid. Ron, the best man was going to be escorting Hermione. Fred Weasley, Dean Thomas, Seamus Finnegan, and Neville Longbottom were to escort the other bridesmaids.

Hermione's heart gave a little throb at Ron, who looked very handsome in his Suit. They had been together for about 2 years now. But nothing serious had happen… to Hermione's secrete disappointment.

He grinned at her.

"You look beautiful" he said

"Thank you," Hermione smiled "you look very nice-"her sentence was cut off by a little cough from Dean.

"Hermione, did you need something?" said Dean, while Hermione looked at harry. Who was looking quite pale, from the nerves.

"Yes, I was going to come ask Harry if he was ready."

"I am," he responded, "how do I look…?"

"Very handsome" Hermione said, and he did. He was wearing a black tuxedo and a black bow-tie to match. His hair was messy as very but that made him look even more handsome, and made his green eyes pop even more. "But you need to go, Ginny is waiting."

"Ginny. Right. Okay. Let's go." Harry took a breath and one last look around the room.

The groomsmen followed harry out of the room, down the stairs, and into the yard outside of the burrow.

Hermione walked back to Ginny's room. She found Ginny sitting on her bed, staring out the window.

"Ginny, they're ready."

Ginny nodded, biting her lip, a look of panic in her eyes.

"You'll be fabulous" said Luna, dreamily, "here something old"

She handed Ginny something.

One of her friends handed her something saying, "something new."

Friends handed her pair of blue earrings "something blue," she grinned.

"A gold Galleon in your shoe" the last friend slid something into Ginny's shoe.

The other bridesmaids looked at Hermione, expectantly.

"And something Borrowed" Hermione smiled widely, "now you have everything."

"Thank you. All of you." Ginny said, teary eyed. She was very emotional, Ginny never cried.

A moment later, Mr. and Mrs. Weasley came through the door.

"Oh Ginny!" Mrs. Weasley cried and hugged her daughter.

"Mum stop," Ginny mumbled, and patted her mother on the back.

"Ready sweetheart?" said Mr. Weasley.

"I think" Ginny took her father's arm.

The bridal party progressed down the stairs and out onto the lawn.

"You first, then you, then you, then Luna, then Hermione."

"Ginny, we know." One of her friends said kindly.

The music that cued the couples to start walking down the aisle began.

"Good luck" everyone whispered to Ginny before they took their escorts arm and walked down the aisle.

When it came to be Hermione's turn she pulled Ginny into a hug, beamed at her, and said "you'll be fine. Don't worry. We all love you."

Ron came up to them and patted Ginny on the shoulder and also wished her luck.

Taking Hermione's arm, they started to walk down the aisle.

"Did you ever expect to be in this situation for _Ginny and Harry?_" Ron muttered.

Hermione shook her head, being too choked up to speak.

"Hermione, I love you." Whispered Ron suddenly.

"Well Ron I love you to, you know that" Hermione replied, bemused.

Then the wedding march started, Ginny walked down the aisle, arm-and-arm with her father. Mrs. Weasley was balling tears, along with some of the other relatives in the audience.

Hermione looked out at all the faces, old ones, new ones, and people she had never met before. She saw Hagrid crying, B_**ill Weasley was holding one of his wife's, Fleur's, hand while she had the other one on her pregnant tummy. She could see Dudley Dursley and his parents standing by the door, waiting for their first chance of escape to come.**_

_**Charlie Weasley was holding Teddy Lupin and sitting by his date, whom Hermione had not yet met, in the second row. The priest in charge of the ceremony smiled encouragingly at Ginny. **_

_**Hermione looked at Harry, who was beaming at Ginny. He looked like the happiest man alive. Hermione gave a smile at the situation, it was too beautiful.**_

_**Ginny and Harry had kept the vowels traditional. Finally after a few reading, a prayer, and the vowels, they finally said "I do."**_

_**They kissed and turned to look at their guests. A thunderous round of applause hit them. Rice was thrown and the lawn was formed into a proper setting for a reception. **_

_**Hermione teared up, as were some others in the audience.**_

_**Hermione went up and hugged both Ginny and Harry. They, holding hands, made their way under the tent. **_

_**As the night went on dinner was served, the first dances went smoothly with cameras clicking away.**_

_**Everyone seemed to dance together. The far most interesting was when Hermione got pulled into the arms of Fred Weasley. **_

_"**So. Hermione. When am I going to get an invitation to you and my charming brothers' wedding?" Fred said.**_

_"**We're not engaged." Hermione muttered, embarrassed.**_

"Not yet? I thought with… well, never mind. When he _does_ pop the question, can I be made of honor?" he said with joking sincerity.

"Wait you thought with what?" Hermione said.

"Never you mind." Said Fred, just as the song ended. "Well, we can continue dance another time."

Hermione laughed and as Fred started to walk away said, "oh, and, No. you cannot be my maid of honor."

Fred put on a face of mock disappointment, making Hermione laugh again.

Hermione stood there a moment then decided to go find Ron. A hand crept around her waist and pulled her to face the other direction, facing a freckly, tall, red headed person.

"Ron! You scared me! I was about to hex you!" Hermione said while putting her hands around his broad shoulders to dance to the slow song that started.

"I'm sorry."

"It's alright." She said and smiled up at him.

"You really do look _so_ beautiful" said Ron, as he pulled her closer.

"Thank you, and you really do look so handsome." Hermione responded.

For the next few minutes they were content to hold each other close and sway in time to the music.

"Hermione, would you like to go for a walk with me?" Ron said.

"Sure." Hermione said.

Ron grabbed her hand, as the wound their way through the crowd of people, he hoping they would be able to find a peaceful place to talk.


	2. the Proposal

_Authors note: okay so I just wanted to let everyone know that this is my __first__ story I have ever published and it is the most incredible and supportive and motivating thing to read positive reviews (I am one of those people that are always insecure about what they do and are too self critical). I have to personally thank hollistachick7 for writing the first (and so far only____) review. It was incredible and I totally 100% thank you for that. But anyway, I'm done rambling, here is the story!_

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Ron and Hermione kept walking through the gardens, until they were up on the hill looking down at the wedding.

"I still can't believe Ginny isn't Ginny anymore. She's _married_. And she's married to _Harry Potter._" Ron said.

"I know," Hermione said, "do you remember when we were little and Ginny couldn't be around him?"

"Do you remember when it was the most embarrassing thing in the world for me to hold you and kiss you?" Ron said slyly, pulling Hermione closer to him.

"Yes," Hermione laughed, letting Ron pull her into a tight embrace.

"Hermione, I love you, so much." Ron whispered into her hair.

"I love you too. I've loved you for a long time, you know that." She responded.

Let go of one another to turn and look at the sky, they saw stars twinkling and heard the birds settling in their nests. The full moon shown down on them like an evening sun, and the trees were swaying gently in the breeze. The carefree laughter and music from the reception down the hill waffled up.

Ron gave Hermione a fleeting look, took a nervous gulp, and let out a slow shaky breath.

"Ron…?" said Hermione, worried.

He held up his finger, to ask for a moment. Hermione still eyed him nervously as he ran his hands over his face.

He nodded to himself, as if he was getting a pep talk.

Suddenly, he grabbed Hermione. He kissed her, very passionately.

_What is this?_ Hermione thought, none the less she kissed back.

As suddenly as it had started, the kiss stopped. Ron pulled himself a few feet away from Hermione.

"Hermione?" he started, "I want… I _need _to ask you something. I want you to be totally honest with me and don't worry about my feelings."

"Yes, Ron. I will but honestly, can't you just get to the point I don't like- "Ron shushed her.

Ron got down on one knee. He grabbed one of Hermione's hands, looked into her eyes and said,

"Hermione, I love you so much. I want to spend the rest of my life with you. Will you marry me?"

Hermione was shocked. It was so unexpected. They hadn't _talked _about marriage at all…

_Sure I've considered this but… really? Wow. Aw. Look at Ron. He looks so hopeful... And worried. I love him so much. I really do want to be with him. I wished we had talked but, oh, how I love him…_

"Yes Ron" Hermione whispered and nodded as her eyed flooded with emotion.

Ron leapt up, grabbed Hermione in his arms, held her and kissed her.

"Thank you" he whispered into her ear.

Hermione's eyes had tearing up, and she feared that if she were to trust her voice and speak it would crack and embarrass her.

After an immeasurable amount of time, the couple decided to go back down to the wedding.

"Ron," said Hermione on their way back down the hill, "that was honestly the most romantic thing you've ever said to me. I love you. But… let's not mention this to anyone."

Ron's mouth dropped. _Be engaged and not tell anyone? I thought women loved to talk about their weddings._

Hermione saw Ron's look of utter astonishment and quickly corrected herself.

"No! You misunderstood me! That's not what I meant! I do want to tell everyone, I'm sorry I confused you love, I just meant let's not tell anyone _tonight._ Its Harry's and Ginny's night. I don't want to take anything away from that.

"Oh. Yeah, er, I know that's what you meant." Ron said.

Hermione shook her head, gave a little laugh, and rolled her eyes at her fiancée.

_Fiancée, Partner, Husband, Ron. Hermione Jean Weasley. _Hermione liked the sound of all those things. She kept thinking of the new terms that she would become once she was married as they walked down the hill.

The second Hermione made eye contact with Ginny, she was sure Ginny guessed. Ron was doing very well in trying to hide is huge grin. Hermione was positively glowing with happiness. Harry gave the pair a curious look and leaned toward Ginny so she could whisper something to him.

Ron and Hermione sat down at a table near the dance floor. (Ron had not eaten earlier, do to his nervousness about the proposal and was now positively famished.) Ginny and Harry walked over to the table and sat down.

"Hey mate." Ron said to harry as Harry did a very guyish thing in slapping Ron on the back. Hermione gave a wide smile to the newlyweds and said,

"Hello, Mr. and Mrs. Potter."

"That sounds nice..." Ginny sighed and Harry grinned.

"But anyway," Ginny said, "that's not why we came over here. Hermione… do you have something you want to tell me?" she finished, giving Hermione a knowing gaze.

"Mmm no." said Hermione, trying to sound innocent and curious about what her best girlfriend could be referring to.

"Harry why don't you and Ron go gets us some drinks." Ginny said.

"Er, okay." Harry said, trying to suppress his grin.

After they had left Ginny leaned in and said to Hermione,

"Hermione, did my dear brother just take you away and _propose _to you?"

Hermione, not trusting her voice again, answered Ginny by taking her hand from under the table and showing Ginny the ring.

Ginny gasped, Hermione nodded, and they both stated letting out very uncharacteristic squeals.

On the other side of the very canvas tent, Ron and Harry were having a discussion on the same topic.

"So you proposed to her?" harry said to Ron.

"How did you know?" Ron responded.

"Ginny's a girl. She figured it out."

"Oh." Ron said.

"Well… did you? C'mon mate. You can tell me?" harry ebbed Ron on.

"Er, yes. But we weren't really planning on announcing it tonight because Hermione said tonight was yours and Ginny's night and that we shouldn't 'take away from that'…" Ron said awkwardly.

"Well whenever you announce it, congratulations." Harry smiled at his friend and patted him on the back.

Ron smiled at his best mate, and soon best man. Then went over to dance with the love of his life, and now finance, Hermione Jean Granger.

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_Hello. I hoped you enjoyed that chapter, I had fun writing it. I am very sorry if there were a lot of errors (grammatical, spelling, and punctuation), normally I print out my stories and proof read them by hand but recently I have been having problems with my printer. But anyway, please review and tell me what you think! _


	3. The Honeymoon

Ginny potter was on edge. It was about time for her and her new husband, harry, to leave for their honeymoon: a one month wizard cruise around the world.

"Hermione?" said Ginny in a wavering voice.

"Yes?" Hermione called from the other room. She sounded emotional, unlike her usual calm and collected self.

"Do you have them?" said Ginny whose voice was down slipping into a whisper.

"Yes, here." Hermione handed Ginny a box, giving it a dirty look as it passed through her hands but trying to conceal the look from her friend.

"Really Hermione…" Ginny muttered, "Now, should I put them on under my dress or should I change on the boat?" Ginny finished, holding up a skimpy piece of lingerie that she had purchased a few days prior.

"Honestly Ginny," Hermione started in a bossy tone, "you are a beautiful girl who doesn't need a piece of _lingerie_ to… _seduce_..." she shook her head, trying to ward off images, "your willing husband."

Ginny tried to hide it but she was flattered at Hermione words.

"Well whatever," she said in a slightly more confident voice, "makes it more fun for harry, I'm going to wear it under my sundress". She said with a mischievous smile and walked in her closet to change saying,

"Are you and Ron coming to see us off?"

"Oh yes," Hermione laughed, "us, your parents, your brothers, their dates, and probably a few cousins' aunts, or uncles..."

Ginny groaned, "perfect…"

"Ginny, dear! Hurry up! You'll miss the boat! Everyone is ready to wave you off!" Mrs. Weasley rapped on the door.

Ginny rushed out of her closet, running her hands through her hair and finishing zipping up her dress.

"H-how do I look?" Ginny said.

"Lovely," Hermione answered helping her zip up the back of her sundress.

And lovely she was, she was wearing a very honeymoonish yellow dress with a hat and sweater to match. She was wearing her flaming hair down, and it was crimped form the braid it had been in all night.

The girls rushed down the stair to the door. Hermione, Ron, Fred, and Mr. and Mrs. Weasley went outside before the newlyweds so they could watch.

Ginny took Harry's hand.

"Ready?" he said, she nodded.

They walked out to door and down a white carpet that had been rolled out for them. On their way to the two trees they would be apperating underneath they had the whitest of white rice thrown at them. Harry was a gentleman and took most of it.

They reached the two trees and stood there a moment to let their guests take a picture. Then harry pulled Ginny down into a fairy-tale, foot popping, prince-charming-meets-princess, kiss.

The crowd cheered and more rice was thrown. Harry and Ginny broke apart and held hands, waving as they apperated away.

The Weasley's and Hermione followed shortly.

The ship harry and Ginny were honeymooning on was giant, white, and otherworldly.

"It looks like the titanic." Hermione said in awe.

"The what?" Ginny and Ron said.

"It was a ship that started to sail across the Atlantic in 1912 and everybody thought it was unsinkable but…" Hermione stopped when she realized everybody (but harry, who was also raised by muggles) was looking at her like a goon.

"Well let's hope this ship doesn't end up like the titanic…" Hermione muttered to herself.

The titanic comment was forgotten in the rush to hug and kiss harry goodbye as the ship let out a thunderous, billowing, whistle.

"Goodbye!"

"Love you!"

"Have fun!"

Family and friends of everybody on the ship could be heard yelling the same farewell wishes.

"Have fun" Fred scoffed, "yeah they'll have plenty of fun…"

His brothers and father laughed while Mrs. Weasley said "Fred!" in a warning tone and Hermione hit him on his arm.

Then Mrs. Weasley broke down into tears.

"Mum, don't cry…"

"Molly, dear…"

"Mum hush you're making a scene…"

"I-I'm so-o-rry, "she sobbed, "It's just, g-Ginny… Ha-arry… honeymoon… wedding… them…"

"Mum be quite!"

After a few moments she regained enough control to go home.

***

Ginny and Harry could see Hermione hitting Fred from where they stood on the edge of the boat. They could see Mrs. Weasley having a breakdown. They could see the family trying to comfort her without making a scene. They saw their family for the last time as they apperated home.

"Hmm. We won't see them for another month…" Ginny sighed.

"Mmm? And you can't think of _anything_ to occupy your mind for the time being?" said harry seductively wrapping his arm around Ginny's waste.

"Mmmaybe" said Ginny, dragging out the word.

They walked down to their cabin saying a few more suggestive things on the way.

Ginny tried to cross the threshold but was stopped by harry who picked her up and carried her in, (as a gentleman should do on his honeymoon) leaving them to find out how to occupy their minds.

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_Authors note: hmmm, awkward much? Sorry, I didn't really know how to write this scene. I'm also having problems figuring out where I want to go with this story. I know what I can do with it but I don't want to make it too terribly long and bore everyone to death, (but it would be quite the opposite of boring. I use 'bore' for lack of a better term. Okay so anyway, COMMENT COMMENT COMMENT! Leave me your opinion! Big time thanks to everyone!_


	4. The News

_Sorry this took a while. I was out of town all weekend for a funeral and when I got back I just wasn't in a mood to write. But anyway, better late than never. _

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"A week," Mrs. Weasley huffed, "they have been gone _one week_ and have_ you_ heard from them?"

"Mum, how many times did you write to _your mum _your honeymoon?" said Ron, sitting at his mother's table with Hermione and Fred, and stuffing his mouth with delicious food.

"Well, that's different… we were… preoccupied and, er, well… more toast Hermione?" Mrs. Weasley tried to hide her embarrassment while her sons and future daughter-in-law suppressed their shocked laughter.

"Mum I'm sure Ginny and Harry are just as preoccupied as you and dad were. If not more. The muggles are making some interesting products for that type of entertainment now a day's…" said Fred, adding, "or so I hear," Under his mothers glare.

This made Ron laugh even harder and even gave Mrs. Weasley a chuckle. Hermione got quite, she had just thought of how, in 4 months, Ginny Harry and Fred would be sitting in this room laughing about her while she was on her honeymoon…

_Ding! Ding! Ding! Ding! Ding! Ding! Ding! Ding! Ding!_

"Isn't that Mr. Weasley?" asked Hermione.

"Yes dear, that's his clock chime… now what is going on...? " Mrs. Weasley scurried out of the room.

"Dads at work?" Fred asked Ron, who shrugged (his mouth was to full to talk.)

Hermione looked out of the kitchen where Mrs. Weasley was staring at the family clock.

"Mrs. Weasley…?"

"Hermione, dear, watch Arthur's hand." Said Mrs. Weasley. The hand Mrs. Weasley was referring to was, of course, the hand on the clock with Mr. Weasley face on it.

"It keeps changing…" Molly muttered.

Instead of where normal number would be on a clock, this one had Home, school, work, traveling, lost, hospital, prison and mortal peril. Mr. Weasley's kept changing from 'work, traveling, prison, and mortal peril'.

Hermione was at a loss for words. She wanted to comfort Mrs. Weasley, who was obviously in distress, but she didn't know what to say. Nor did she know what was going on, something she didn't like.

"What should we do?" Hermione asked.

"I don't know, dear. Perhaps we should just wait to hear the news. "

The two women made their way back into the kitchen to explain the news to Fred and Ron.

The three Weasley's and Hermione sat in the kitchen for an immeasurable amount of time, alone in their separate thoughts.

At one point Hermione started to wonder what she could to do help, she knew that sitting around was doing nothing. Just as she was brainstorming about what to do, Mrs. Weasley got up to check the clock (which she had been doing periodically). While in the other room a great black owl came pecking at the window.

"Bloody hell!" said Ron, and he jumped to go get the owl before it broke down the window.

Fred ran to get the bird some water and Hermione decided to undo the letter tied to the owl's leg.

"Mrs. Weasley…" she called, "you have mail…"

Mrs. Weasley grabbed the red envelope and said, "Why… it's a howler… it must be from Arthur!"

They had obviously waited too long to open the howler because it started to smoke than burst open.

"_Molly dear, I'm in a bit of a… situation. I do not think I am in any personal danger but Harry might be. I need you to come down to the Ministry and met me in my office. You can bring Ron and Hermione if it's convenient. Ah, yes. The minister wants them to come to. I love you; give whose ever at the house my best wishes. And er, molly, if you could hurry it would be appreciated."_

A tense silence follow, then Mrs. Weasley began bossing everyone around.

"Ron! You can show up at the ministry like that! Go change! Hermione, brush your hair! Oh my, I have to change as well… Fred! Put up the usual enchantments on the house, I am not sure how long we shall be gone…"

"But mum-"Ron started off but Hermione silenced him by giving him a "don't argue" look.

Ten minutes later, a mountain of stress, an argument over Fred, (he wanted to come and in the end his mother said yes.) and much hasty grooming, everyone was ready.

They apperated to the lobby of the ministry and walked up to Arthur's office. They were greeted by many and several asked Ron and Hermione why they were at work on a Saturday.

Finally they made it to his office. They were greeted by a hasty hug from Mr. Weasley and handshakes by the minister.

"Arthur, what's going on?" Mrs. Weasley hissed.

"Well Mrs. Weasley it appears that your son in law has committed a serious felony"said the new minister, Vernon Hayes.

"What did he do?" said Fred.

"Mr. Harry Potter was placed under arrest last night for a murder of 7 muggles." Said the minister, and the Weasley's mouths dropped.

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_Eh, not my best. I know. Like I said I have been having trouble writing and just really haven't been, I don't know. In the mood. But anyway please review! Thanks___


	5. The Visit

"Wait…. He's arrest-…. _WHAT?_" said Ron.

Mrs. Weasley gasped, Hermione clapped her hand to her mouth and Fred laughed.

"Good one Minister." He said.

Hermione rolled her eyes in spite of the situation, she knew the minister wasn't joking.

"I'm quite serious Mr. Weasley. Mr. Harry Potter was arrested last night for murdering 7 muggles. Our auror's went aboard his ocean liner last night to place chargers. He has not been sent to Azkaban, however he is in a holding cell in this building."

"Excuse me, minister, how do you know Harry murdered these people?" Hermione asked.

"We have information that he was on the location of the murders the night they happened, _AND _his wand was found as the murder weapon," Said the minister.

"How can you think harry did that? Did he admit it? This IS harry potter, he wouldn't. He's an auror himself. Did you have him checked? You're absolutely sure it is him?"

"Ms. Granger you seem to be under the impression that you can do my job better than I!" the minister snapped, and Hermione blushed but held her head high. The minister sighed and continued,

"Yes, we did have him checked. And I'm sure any question you have I have been asked multiple times. This has been hard for me as well. I don't want to arrest him but I have to. It is my job."

"Can we see him?" Molly Weasley asked.

The minister glanced at the aurors in the corner, one nodded.

"Alright. Follow him." The minister said and waved his hand at the auror.

"Minister," Hermione said before she walked out of the room, "where is Ginny?"

"She was questioned, and cleared. She was found innocent, she was told to leave. "

Mrs. Weasley and Hermione looked at each other, with questioning eyes. Hermione was about to say more when Ron pulled her out of the room.

"Hermione, you're gonna get us in trouble…" her whispered.

They went down the elevator to a lever under the atrium, it was where wizards and witches were questioned before being sent to Azkaban.

"Harry potter," said Mr. Weasley to the big man guarding the door.

The guard waved his wand and a tangerine light appeared,

"Follow this," he said.

The group followed the light down a hallway and around a corner till they found two other big wizards guarding a cell which said "high security" over the door.

"May we go in?" Hermione asked.

The tinier man (which still was not very tiny,) grunted and opened the door.

"Harry!" Hermione cried, she tried to run forward then was jerked abruptly to a stop by an invisible wall.

"Harry dear, are you alright?" said Mrs. Weasley.

"I'm fine Mrs. Weasley, where's Ginny?"

Hermione and Ron exchanged looks,

"We don't know mate, we were going to ask you…" Ron said.

"I'm sure she's fine, she always is." Fred said, "But we want to know what happened to you."

"It was just, er, I don't really know."

"Well tell us what you do know," Mr. Weasley said.

"I think somebody used polyjuice and took my wand."

"Bloody hell…" Ron muttered.

"Naturally, nobody believed me. What I think happened was while Ginny and I were, er…" harry turned a deep shade of red and avoided looking at Mr. and Mrs. Weasley. Ron and Fred laughed before harry continued, "busy. Somebody might have been able to take my wand."

"Harry, doesn't it make more sense for somebody to have snuck into your room while you were out of it? That way they could have found one of your hairs and taken your wand." Hermione said.

"Or did you not leave your room, mate?" Fred said, Ron snorted.

"I took my wand with me whenever I went outside my room" harry said, ignoring Ron and Fred.

"Well, have they checked the wand for fingerprints? Are you sure it was polyjuice potion? Harry, you weren't under the imperious curse were you?!?" Hermione said, her voice rising.

"No, I remember everything."

"Well that's good," fared started, "I'm sure Ginny-"

"FRED! HARRY POTTER IS BEING CHARGED WITH MURDER! CAN YOU _STOP THE DAMN SEX JOKES!?!?_" Hermione shrieked, and started hitting him on the arm. "Will," hit, "you," hit "SHUT UP!?!" hit, hit.

Fred gaped open mouthed at Hermione, he hadn't seen her lose control like in, well, ever.

He nodded, "thank you" Hermione growled. She took a moment to regain control then spoke again,

"Do you have a hearing?"

"Yes. In a week. But I'm not allowed to leave until I am cleared or convicted."

"Harry they cant arrest you, they simply can't. Its, wrong, preposterous. I'll look of cases of this in the past, they just opened that new book store in Diagon alley, there must be something there…"

Harry and Ron grinned at her, it reminded them of the Hogwarts Hermione.

"Harry dear, are we allowed to bring you things?" Mrs. Weasley said, "I can bring you a blanket and some food."

" I don't know Mrs. Weasley, you'dhave to ask. But you don't have to…" harry said.

"No dear, I'm going to bring you something. Arthur? Can you come with me? I'm not sure to ask."

"Yes molly…" Mr. Weasley tried to pat harry on the shoulder but the invisible wall blocked him. So he said, "Everything will be alright harry," as words of comfort.

"We'll be out in a moment mum," Ron said.

"We will try and come back with Ginny to visit," Hermione said.

Harry nodded with thanks.

"Its gonna be okay mate," Ron said and gave a half-hearted grin at harry.

"You know harry, if mum can bring you food cant I bring you things from the shop? I think you would really enjoy this new product-"

"No! Fred, I'm already incarcerated for murder; I don't need anything else charged against me. Like, for example, blowing up the ministry." Harry smiled, which felt odd under such circumstances.

"This doesn't blow things up!" Fred said indignantly, "it is my new product that-"

"No. thanks anyway." Harry laughed.

"Harry we have to go, we will come see you as soon as possible, I'm really sorry." Hermione said, tears starting to well up in her eyes.

"G'bye mate." Ron said.

"Bye Harry." Fred.

"Bye guys…" said harry, as he watched his best friends walk away, Ron talking Hermione's hand and Fred clasping Ron on the shoulder. Oh how he wished he had Ginny's hand to hold.

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_I wasn't sure about some of the things I got across in this chapter. I think I said what I wanted to say but I'm not positive. But if you have any questions leave a comment and if you don't, comment anyway! Thanks for reading!!_


	6. The Trial

*One week before hearing*

Ginny Weasley sat on the daybed in her old bedroom, looking out the window at the cloudy day. Ever since Harry had been taken into custody, it had been threatening to rain, never raining, always threatening.

_Just like harry's trial_, Ginny thought, _I never know what's about to happen…_

She had been visiting her husband as often as possible, which happened almost every other day. Hermione, Ron, her brothers, her parents, and some of Harry's old friends had been there every time she went. Ginny was dying for some alone time with harry.

Ginny had been staying with her parents for the past week. She and Harry had bought a house but going there without him felt so wrong, it was _their _house.

Thinking about Harry's trail felt like a 100 pound weight dropping on her stomach. The pain, the worry, and the questions (like, how a hundred pound weight got dropped on her in the first place).

She hadn't seen much of anyone since the news of harry. Hermione had been in any library or bookstore she could find, looking for information on cases similar to Harry's. Ron had been helping in any way he could, but to little avail, so he focused more on work. Mr. Weasley was busy trying to find out more information on Harry's case and Mrs. Weasley had been visiting Harry every day.

Ginny wasn't used to not doing anything; she was a Quidditch correspondent for the Daily prophet, but it was the off-season. Normally, this would have meant going to professionals' try-outs to report and coaching a kid's team that met every Thursday night a few miles away from her house.

But her boss decided to be "Kind" while Ginny was going through this hard time and even got the kids on the team to insist on an assistant coach until after Harry's trial.

All she had to do was sit at home. For the first few days it was nice, she got her thoughts in order, then she got bored. Ginny decided to stay in her parents' house so she wouldn't be lonely _and _bored. Recently she had been looking through her old school books and note-books.

She was about to go and look through her old childhood toys when she heard someone apperate downstairs and a voice call, "Ginny?"

Ginny ran downstairs and skidded to a stop before slamming into Hermione.

"Hi" said Ginny breathlessly.

"Hello," said Hermione, "Are you well?"

"Yeah," Ginny nodded, "you?"

"I'm fine. I was looking for trial information and I found something similar, it was in the War Ensign of Germany in 1892 when a wizard was participating in a Muggles war, which you know is frowned upon, but he was in the presence of 18 muggle killings and was charged on the same accounts as harry but in the end he was found guilty… there are countless numbers of a murder using polyjuice potion and stealing another's wand to murder but never in the amount of seven… well, seven humans. I wizard was found doing what I just told you only on 13 house elves and he didn't serve any sentence! I would have done something about it but that was 400 years ago…"

Ginny, who had been thrilled to see her friend a minute ago, looked at Hermione blankly, the words were going in one ear and right out the other.

"Hermione, I'm sorry, but-"Hermione cut her off before she could finish.

"Its fine Ginny, I understand," Hermione said and smiled at her friend.

The next week passed in a haze, Ginny didn't know anything about what happened. But she did know how unnaturally aware of everything she was on the day of the trial.

She woke up to the sound of creaking floorboards on the lowest level of the house where her parents were moving. The birds seemed exceptionally loud and the bacon frying seemed to be screaming.

The light was blinding her, the dark was unnatural. She was ultra aware of using her hands and moving her feet. Everything seemed unnatural.

It was unlike Ginny to be scared or over emotional, but she was. During her morning shower she sobbed about the day ahead; nobody knew, the shower washed away her tears.

Ginny didn't ever wear much makeup, but what she did wear she made sure was water proof.

She went through her morning routine quietly. At eleven O'clock Ron and Hermione showed up on the doorstep of the Weasley house. Hermione took Ginny quickly into a hug and Ron gave her one of those awkward brother hugs.

Without further ado they left the house. Bill, Fleur, and Charlie were to meet them outside the door to the hearing room. Ginny was shaking so Charlie but a comforting arm around her. Ron was doing the same to Hermione, Bill and Fleur and Mr. and Mrs. Weasley were holding hands.

"Trial Called to session," the judge called, "The case in question…" he ruffled through some papers,

"Mr. Harry James Potter, being charged with the murder of seven innocent muggles, was called here today to present his case of innocence. Speaking for him today shall be Mr. Brighton Reed.

Harry's lawyer argued with the evidence for what seemed like hour, while Ginny anxiously bit her nails, waiting for the judge to reach his decision.

The other men and women who thought Harry was guilty fought back, even bringing up old scandals from his Hogwarts years. Like his sanity, or murder.

"Harry was not responsible for any of the murders he was accused for!"

"Are you sure? Well what about in his fifth year when…"

The trial dragged on and on. Hermione and the adult Weasley's listened intently, but the younger ones were zoning in and out. Ginny refused to listen to some of the things that were being said about harry. She had gotten so angry at one Fred had to dig his nails into her arm to distract her from screaming at the jury and other members of the council.

After hours and hours of sitting and listening to lawyers argue Ginny felt sick, worried sick and physically sick. Her head was spinning and her stomach was queasy. She wanted to whisper something to her mother, but said to herself,

_I'm strong. I'll live. This is Harry, he needs me and I need to be here._

After that, a wave of something came over her, and she was able to listen to the trial. She caught Harry's eye at some point and smiled, he smiled back.

After a little while longer, the judge spoke,

"I have reached my decision. Mr. Harry potter will be released from his holding cell. He will be, however, only allowed to go to his home and to his work. I am putting trackers on him to monitors this. Family and Friends are allowed to visit. Our aurors," he gestured to some men in a corner, "will continue to work on his case. He will be called back for another trial where I will reach my final decision. Expect an owl. Case dismissed!"

A moment of silence came, followed by the Weasley making haste to get over to harry. They all hugged and cried, earning them quite a few dirty looks from people against harry.

Ginny had immediately ran up to harry and hugged him, he had hugged her back tightly and said,

"I love you."

She pulled her arms around his neck and kissed him, then responded by saying,

"I love you too," and smiling.

After more hugs Ginny took harry's hand and said,

"Let's go home."

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_Well that's that. LOL. I am REALLY sorry this took so long but I was just not interested in this chapter so it went really slowly. I promise the next one will be a lot more interesting and come a lot quicker! So please review and please, please enjoy! ___


	7. The Agruement

The night after the trial was an adventure.

Hermione suggested they get food from a muggle restaurant so Mrs. Weasley wouldn't have to cook. Mrs. Weasley thought that was a good idea and Mr. Weasley was thrilled that he was going to get to go inside a muggle place.

Hermione went into a nice American restaurant to get their food; the Weasley's had never eaten hamburgers or French fries and she thought it would be a good experience.

Back at Harry and Ginny's house they ate and pretended they were merry. The conversation turned more serious when Hermione, who had been being quite for a while, asked,

"Harry, did you see who the aurrors that were assigned on your case were?"

"Er, no. I didn't think to look. Why? Did you?"

"Well…" Hermione look a little nervous, "Zacharias Smith was one…"

"WHAT???" harry jumped up to his feet.

"How did that git become an aurror?!"Said Ron.

"I don't know... I wish he hadn't been assigned on Harry's trial. He's a terribly selfish… and He's never liked Harry!"

"HE'S A BLOODY COWARD!"

"HE WAS TOO STUPID TO TAKE AN AURROR TEST!" Ron and Harry shouted.

"Remember when I put that bat-boogey hex on him in my fifth year?" said Ginny.

It was a pure comic-relief moment. Ron, Harry, and Hermione looked at her then everyone started to laugh. Once they started it was hard to stop, the feeling of anxiety left while they laughed.

They laughed until their sides hurt, and then everyone decided to go home.

"Bye,"

"Night,"

"Goodnight,"

"See you," said everyone as they walked out the door.

Once everyone was gone, and the dished thrown out Ginny looked at Harry and rapped her arms around him. He kissed her on top of her head and she pressed her head into his shoulder. They stood like that for a minute before Ginny looked up and said,

"You know, this is the first time I have been alone with you since our honeymoon."

Harry gave her a seductive smile but lifted his eyebrows indicating her to continue.

"Sooo, I was thinking we should celebrate." Ginny started and pressed her body closer to his.

"And how are we going to do that?" said Harry with another grin, pulling Ginny closer to himself.

"Well we could start with this," and Ginny pressed her lips against his then pulled away to look at him.

He could only look at her a second before he quickly pulled her face to his.

Then he lifted her off the floor and walked her to their bedroom and laid her on their bed so they could make love all night.

***

That same night, Ron decided to apperate Hermione home. He had been being usually protective the last few weeks. Hermione suspected that he was scared that she was going to be murdered or be accused of murder.

Hermione had been living in a muggle building close to the ministry. They apperated into the front of her apartment so the muggles wouldn't see them.

"Thank you Ron" Hermione said with a bit of mockery in her voice.

Ron didn't say anything but pulled her face close to his to give her a goodnight kiss. Before Harry was convicted he was been trying to get Hermione to spend the night with him.

The trial had pushed that to the back of his mind, but now that he knew Harry wasn't going to be arrested, it was dominating his head.

When Hermione started too pulled away he kissed her harder and slid his hands down her back.

Hermione internally rolled her eyes, and grabbed Ron's hands.

"Ron," she said.

"Hermione," he responded.

"Stop," she pleaded.

"Why?" said Ron, starting to get angry.

"Because! I'm just not ready!"

"I don't think that's why! I think you don't want too!" Ron shouted.

"Shhh, Ron, you'll wake everyone up!"

"I don't give a damn about them! Answer my question!"

"Yes, Ron. Of course I do. I love you, how could I not want that?"

"Why not then? It's been like, three years!"

"Look," said Hermione, who was now starting to get angry, "I really want this too. Just like you. But _I'm not ready. _How long have you know me?? Do you think I'm the type of person that just _does_ this? Just rushes randomly into it?"

"YOU think OVER THREE YEARS is RUSHING?!?"

Hermione, being as emotionally drained over everything as she was, sat down on her couch and out her head in her hands. She took a second then looked up and spoke.

"What is your _problem? WHY _are you so instant on this??"

Now Ron sat down on the couch next to her and took her hands.

"Because, I love you. That's what you do when you love someone."

"It took you long enough to make a move on me! None the less tell me you love me!"

"Hermione I have loved you for a long, _long _time. It just took me a while to say it to you," Ron said, ears turning red at the very end.

Hermione looked at him, expecting him to say something else. Ron didn't know what else to say so he got up and said,

"Whatever Hermione. I'm going home, I'll see you tomorrow."

"No! Ron!" Hermione jumped up off the couch and ran to him before he could disappear.

"No, don't go… I've loved you for a long, long while to…"

"Yeah?" said Ron, his voice heavy with doubt.

"I think I'm just… scared." She said her face turning red and her voice getting quite.

Ron's face, thick with skepticism, softened.

"Is that is, love? Really?"

She nodded and Ron pulled her into his arms.

"Hermione," he laughed into her hair. "I'm scared to. Really. I just, want this. Badly. And, it kills me that we waited so long, but I know it will be worth it."

Hermione looked up at him, her eyes had started tearing up and he wiped the drops of water away with his finger.

"Ron that is honestly the most romantic thing you have said to me."She smiled, "but I _do _want us to. But, not tonight, sorry. I promise, soon… really soon. Now leave before you actually undermine my self control!"

"I could do that?"

"GOODNIGHT RON!"

"'night," he said and gave her a quick kiss before apperating away.

Hermione smiled and got herself ready for bed, trying not to worry about Ron and Her relationship.

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_Hey guys! Ha-ha that chapter was really fun to write so it came quickly. Please tell me what you think! Did I make the right decision with Ron and Hermione? What about the trial chapter, what did you think of that? Please, please comment! –Lilly_


	8. The Next Day

The next day Ron woke up in a foul mood, he figured after sleeping 6 hours he would be better. But maybe he needed _more_ sleep to feel well.

He got out of bed, did his morning bathroom things, got dressed, then as he was going into the kitchen to eat some breakfast he glanced at the clock.

_Hmmm. That's funny, that clock says eight-fifteen, but it __**should **__say eight o'clock, _he thought deliriously.

Ron continued about his business for a few seconds before the truth his him,

He swore loudly. Frantically he ran around the room picking up papers and stuffing them into his briefcase.

He apperated outside the ministry of magic as soon as he was sure he had everything he needed. He ran through the doors and the atrium into the big elevators. He got out and went into his office.

Just as Ron was trying to look like he wasn't late for work his boss walked in.

"Ron," said the deep voice of Kingsley_** Shacklebolt, "you're late."**_

_"**Yeah I know, sorry…" Ron said sheepishly.**_

_"**Well then I suppose you haven't seen the papers I placed on your desk."**_

_"**Er, no sir, sorry, hang on a minute…" said Ron riffling through the papers he had just dumped on his desk.**_

_"**Oh! This one?" he asked Shacklebolt. "The one you wrote to me?"**_

_"**Read it," said Kingsley in a tired voice.**_

_**Ron's eyes zipped over the paper, and then he read it over again, not believing what it said.**_

_"**You're placing **____**me**__** on Harry's trial? Why!? Bloody hell…"**_

_"**Because Weasley, you, and Mr. Potter but we can't use him, are the ministry's best aurors. You will also be working with Mr. Rodney Hummers."**_

_"**Rodney? But he's so… inexperienced. And wouldn't the ministry think, because I'm harry's best mate, that I'm not the man for the job?"**_

_"**Quite the opposite." Kingsley said, "We think that because you and Harry are so close you will work twice as hard. Starting today you and Hummers will be going back through the places that the murder happened. This had already been done but it will be repeated until we find the culprit. If you have a suspect- and this includes Mr. Potter- you will be allowed to call them in for questioning. I have the list of locations that Mr. Potter was and where the muggles had been but you may need to do more research into that as well. Any questions?"**_

_"**No sir" said Ron in a tiny voice.**_

_"**Good, you'll start now," And he started to walk out of the room, but before he got there he turned back around and said, **_

_"**As for Mr. Hummers, he is inexperienced and insecure I might admit but he shows tremendous potential. Give him a chance. Bright as you are he sees things that you do not. Good day Weasley."**_

_"**Bloody hell…" Ron muttered.**_

_**Normally he would have written Hermione a quick letter about what happened but seeing as he was still sore about the previous night, he did not.**_

He walked down to the tiny office that belonged to Kingsley's secretary and got the list of locations.

He scanned it, it looked pretty basic. He was supposed to go search the muggles houses, the ship the murders were on, and the locations they were twenty-four hours before the murders.

_I should call in their family members too, they might know something. I could ask them the questions then use a memory charm… but im not very good at that, I should ask Hermione… _he thought.

"Do you know where Rodney is?" said Ron to the secretary.

He didn't like the secretary much, he was a sucking up workaholic who pushed Ron aside whenever somebody more important - like harry, - was around.

Secretary boy shook his head. Ron let out an exasperated sigh and prayed that this secretary would not be given a shot as head of the auror department. However, being Kinsley's personal secretary gave him a pretty good shot.

Ron took a good 20 minutes searching the auror department for Rodney. Apparently, Rodney had been looking for him too and they just had off timing. One would look in the bathroom, leave, and then the other would walk in.

Ron complained for a minute before they set off. First, they decided to go visit the friends and family of the murdered muggles so they could find out something like, if they knew about harry and what they were doing the night they were murdered or the day before.

Ron found it to be a very difficult experience to talk to the muggles family. He had never been very good at communication but, thankfully, he found out Rodney was.

All the family's had been told different things about how their loved ones died. The wife of an elderly man that had died was told he had a heart attack. The brother of a druggie was said to have over dosed. A perfectly healthy woman in her thirties was told to have, had a cancer spot. The child was said to have fallen out of bed and suffered a fatal head injury. Two big men had the story that they had secretly been hit men and got in a fight, then killing each other. Finally, another teenage girl had accidently drank some foreign juice that she had a freak allergic reaction to.

Explaining these stories and watching the families grieve was the hardest part. Telling the ridiculous stories, like the hit man one, was even harder.

Ron and Rodney would go into a house, explain why they were there, let the families grieve and talk a bit, then start the questioning.

Rodney was good at making the families trust him and comforting them, but Ron was good at the actual questioning.

Some families were surprising. The parents and siblings of the little girl were hysterical; they had no emotion of their feelings. The girl's mother wept and shook the whole time, and the father would be beyond tears then go into a fit of rage. At one point the mother cried so hard she had to run into the bathroom and vomit. Rodney found this family the saddest and went to sit between the brother and sister, wrapping his arms around them and saying calming words to the whole room.

The old women whose husband had died was surprisingly calm, answering questions and saying how much she missed him but never actually crying. Her sorrow was beyond pain, she was numb, totally shocked. Ron found her the most upsetting to his spirit. He thought crying and yelling were a way to get the pain out but she seemed to be beyond pain. This woman had lost the love of her life, seventy years with this man and he just dies. Towards the end of their meeting she started talking about her regrets.

At that point Ron realized that he didn't want to have any regrets with Hermione. If something terrible happened to her, there were some things he didn't think he could live without apologizing.

They never actually had to reveal they were wizards. The families gave them the information without struggle or suspension. Telling the families Ron and Rodney was the last step they had wanted to take, and luckily they didn't have too.

After all the interviews were done it was time to go home. The next day they planned to go search at least three of the places the muggles had been. Three locations was the goal, as they didn't know how long it was going to take.

Ron got home and instantly sent an owl to Hermione. He wrote,

Dear Hermione,

Hi. I'm sorry about last night but we need to talk. I need to say something to you that I realized today. Could you meet me in that new dining hall in Diagon alley at 7? I hope to see you then.

Love, Ron

Ron decided to shower and get ready. He only had an hour but, as he was a guy, that was plenty of time.

About fifteen minutes later Ron got a reply to his owl. It read,

Dear Ron,

I accept your apology and I will meet you at seven. I have some things to talk to you about, also.

Love, Hermione

Ron- who had been taking his time-looked at his watch and realized that, for the second time that day, he was late.

It was ten till seven and he was standing in his bathroom wearing nothing but a towel. He flew around his bedroom grabbing and article of clothing he could find. He brushed his teeth, ran a comb through his hair and without looking in the mirror apperated out to Diagon alley.

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_Good? I wasn't sure. But I think I like it. I realize that placing Ron as auror for harry's case wasn't very original but I'm hoping the end will be. What do you think, should I wrap up the story soon? Is it getting too long? Let me know. It would also be great if you could let me know if I'm making a lot of spelling/grammar mistakes. I know it's just fanfic and I HAVE been checking myself and I may have missed something. Sorry I'm babbling but I hope you like it anyway, comment please!_


	9. The Discovery

Hermione had chosen to come to the new restaurant in Diagon alley the minute she got the owl.

She had been at a meeting all day and still looked nice, so she didn't need to spend time primping. Not like she spent a lot of time on that anyway.

She was sipping a pumpkin juice when Ron walked through the door and her heart skipped a beat.

_Stop that! _She told herself.

"Hey…" Ron said, in a more quite manner than he would have normally.

"hello." Said Hermione, "you wanted to talk to me…?"

"Yeah," Ron cleared his throat and got down to business right away, "Hermione today when I was at work interviewing people who had lost the ones they love I realized how sorry I was. The only reason I was trying to force you into sex is because I love you but if I really loved you I would have let you do that when you were ready and not thrown a fit about it. I am sorry and I want you to forgive me and I also realized that if I die tomorrow I want you to know how much I love you. How much I love you and how long I have loved you and what you mean to me. "

Hermione looked across the table at the boy she had known all her life that had trouble with talking about his feelings. She then realized that this man was no longer that boy. She was ecstatic at the thought of what he had said but, seeing as Hermione was a pusher, she decided to push him a bit more.

"And how much do I mean to you Ron?"

Ron looked a little surprised that Hermione had actually pressed him into continuing but he did anyway,

"Er… Well, you're the totally opposite of me. You're smart and organized and on top of things and practical and logical and… funny and beautiful and…" Ron couldn't continue.

Hermione gave him a warm smile and laughed.

"Did you know the qualities that you admire in a person you often have yourself? You're smart, funny, handsome… maybe not organized or on top of things but…"

They both laughed.

"Thanks" said Ron.

"Thank you and I love you too. But now that we're speaking again you should tell me about what happened today. "

Ron continued to go into detail about his day and the inquiries he had held.

"If you want my opinion," Hermione said, "I think somebody had inside information on Harry to do this. I mean hello? It would have been simple enough to find out what ship he was going to be on but what room? However, the thing that really interests me is the ties of connections between these muggles and the murderer."

"Yeah, I thought of that but I couldn't find anything. I even asked the families if they had heard of the other families."

"Ron, if it wouldn't be too much trouble I would like to come with you tomorrow. I think I may be able to help and I could take a day off of work," adding, "as much as I don't want too," when Ron raised his eyebrows at her.

"Yeah, I guess you could. I don't really care. Rodney will be excited…"

Hermione knew Ron didn't like something that was going on but she could quite put her finger on it. They finished their meal, said goodbye, and went home.

The next day they both awoke in a freakish optimistic mood. Upon confessing this to each other they realized that, if they both felt it, something good must happen.

They both waited for Rodney and the threesome went on their way. They were going to the places where the muggles had been the days prior to their deaths. All three searched, interviewed, and searched again but only to find out nothing.

They looked all day, and into the evening. At about nine o'clock they were so discouraged that they decided to go and get a drink. Rodney took one last look of the list of locations they had to go to and realized that they had skipped a spot. Incidentally it happened to be a pub and Hermione insisted they go to this muggle pub instead of a wizard one.

Ron knew the second he entered the pub that something was about to happen. He became edgy and couldn't sit still. He was still feeling anxious when the man walked in. the man was wearing a beige trench coat and a nice hat. He removed the gloves on his hands and took a seat next a few bar stools down from them.

Ron pushed his feelings of anxiety away and tried to enjoy his evening. He paid the man in the trench coat no more attention but couldn't help notice how many drinks he was having.

About an hour later the man started to babble in a drunken way about something. Rodney and Ron laughed while Hermione just gave him a disgusted look. She did not believe in drinking yourself beyond comprehension of the things around you.

She was about to tell Rodney and Ron to move when she heard the man say something about his brother who had just been killed on a cruise.

"Sshhh!" she hushed the two men.

"Yeah mate… e'd just gone on a cruise babbling away about somat… jerry was is name… I'm a doc… tor. Real close to my brother I was… I was told he had been a secrete hit man but I know betta… e wasn't a damn hit man! E was a law-yer… he was a sa… mart man e was..." The man in the trench coats words were smushed together but the threesome understood them perfectly well.

They gave each other shocked looks then started to debate in whispers about what they should do.

"We have to go talk to him!" said Hermione

"No! Just let him keep talking!" said Ron, who didn't like the idea of Hermione talking to a strange drunk man.

"Ronald, if we don't say something now he might get off topic and then we would seem suspicious to try and get him to talk about it again! If we just act like we don't know, and act sorry he should just ramble on!"

"Hermione," Ron said trying to imitate Hermione's bossy tone with little success, "if we talk to him we might say something that WOULD get him off topic. You could distract him!"

"I think we should talk to him," interjected Rodney.

"Shut up!" said Ron.

"Thank you!' said Hermione, "well it's two against one. Let's do it."

Ron let out and exasperated sigh but followed Hermione and Rodney anyway.

"Hello," said Hermione to the man in a mellow voice, "I overheard you say your brother died. I'm very sorry."

"Ey lassie!" he grinned stupidly, "you with ginger? You could come have a nip to drink with mee…"

"No thank you. I just thought you might want to talk about it…" Hermione avoided looking at Ron, who was giving her an 'I told you so' look.

"Eh, yeah lass. Well e was going on a cruise to get away from some problem e was having…"

"What problem was that?" Hermione interjected.

"I dun know do I? Babbling on about some bloke called… eh, smith wann't it?"

"Smith? Zacharias smith?" Rodney whispered to Ron. Ron shrugged and shook his head.

"What was wrong with him and smith?" said Hermione. She had started to lean closer to the man and in doing so had started to show a smidge of cleavage (unknowingly of course).

The man was looking at her chest when Ron was about to say something. Rodney grabbed his arm and shook his head while indicating at Hermione to sit up straight, she got the hint.

The man continued,

"Owed im a bit of money didn't E? Im and another man… really snotty bloke. Thought he was great, I meet him once. I real pain in the arse if you asked me… what was is name? Er, Ligeon? Pigeon? Um... Migeon?"

"Migeon… Ron who is that?!" Hermione said.

Rodney and Ron glanced at each other before remembering.

"Migeon! That's the name of Kingleys secretary!"

"How much money did he owe?" Rodney asked. The man in the trench coat didn't seem as interested in Rodney as he did in Hermione. So he turned back to her and said,

"I dun no… few thousand?"

"Excuse me," Hermione said then hopped around the drunken man and said to her the two R's,

"That would supply a motive! This is it! _That's_ why they were killed! I'm sure! I bet that's also why the others got killed! But the little boy? Hmmm. Well we'll worry about him later! This is it! Does anybody have a camera? Can we take a picture of him?"

Ron hadn't seen Hermione so happy in a long while, and Rodney-who had only met her a few hours prior- had never seen her so happy. Because none of them had a camera Hermione decided to ask the man his name, address, and phone number in case they had to contact him later. Unfortunately the man was under the impression that Hermione wanted the information for a different reason…

They left the bar in high spirits and Rodney apperated home. Hermione and Ron looked at each other before he threw her arms around him and started kissing him full on the mouth. Shocked as he was, Ron didn't resist.

"Ron," breathlessly after a few minutes, "I love you. Ahh! We did it!" she jumped up and down with joy before starting to snog him again.

"Hermione, what the bloody hell has gotten into you?" said Ron, "you know we're still outside the pub?"

"Yes! I don't care. Well, yes, take me home?"

Ron, still baffled at her change of heart (and enthusiasm) agreed and within five minutes they were standing outside her door.

"Do you want me to go…?" Ron said. He was still hoping Hermione would have sex with him but if she didn't he was planning on walking out with dignity this name.

Hermione, who had still been trying to kiss him suddenly stopped and but her lip. Ron swore he could hear the well oiled machine that was her brain working quite hard.

Hermione was fighting an internal battle with herself. She really wanted Ron to stay but she did not want to make their first time out of a victory.

_We shouldn't have victory sex as our first time…_ she thought, _but it feels so right. I really shouldn't have any major distractions right now. And this is a __major__ distraction! But I don't think it's ever going to feel righter. It has to happen sometime… no, yes, no, yes, no! Agh! What the hell!_

She took one look at Ron before showing him she had made her decision; His body language almost made her burst out laughing. He was trying to look away (to prove he wasn't desperate), his arms were crossed (proving that whatever she chose was fine with him), and his lips were pursed (proving that he really, really, wanted her decision to be a yes!).

"Ron..." she laughed before wrapping her arms around him and kissing him again. He wrapped his arms around her before pulling her to a more comfortable position in her bedroom.

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Translating the drunk's language:

Im- him

E- He

Ey- hey

_Umm I think that's it. Any questions please ask! Thanks._


	10. Authors Note

Hey guys! I just wanted to say that I changed my rating to 'T' because the things I'm writing about aren't bad but they are something you would see in a PG-13 movie and I just don't want an 8 year old to read this then me getting hate mail from that kids mom because my rating was too low. That's all.

Thanks, Lilly:D


	11. The History of Them

Hermione woke up early the next morning. She laid in Ron's arms for a minute, totally and blissfully happy. Then, being Hermione, she started to think about the night before.

_Was I… good? _She cringed at the thought; _did Ron enjoy himself as he should have? Because often when a person fantasizes about something for a longtime it's a letdown. I read something on that a while ago. Oh where was it…? Hermione! Stop that! You sound like those silly girls that you used to dorm with at Hogwarts! This is ridiculous. Ron said he loves you and if he truly loves you then it should have been as enjoyable for him as it was for you…_

She tried to move her body ever-so-slightly to see Ron's face. His arm was wrapped around her body which made it difficult not to wake him up. Never the less she managed.

Hermione's heart melted when she saw Ron's face; his head was tiled and laying on the pillow. He had a beautiful peaceful smile on his face. Hermione realized at that moment how truly lost she would be without Ron. If anything ever happened to him… but she didn't want to think about that.

Instead her mind traveled to her years at Hogwarts with Ron. They meet on the Hogwarts express. She walked into Ron and Harry's compartment looking for a toad. Immediately she thought Ron was adorable but she pushed her feeling aside, knowing that she needed to focus on school. She was glad that she had ignored her feelings too; Ron turned out to be an ignorant jerk who criticized her before he even knew her. Hermione remember the day she ran into a girls bathroom after overhearing Ron make fun of her, not knowing, that a few hours later he and Harry would save her from a full grown troll and they would be best friends forever after that.

In her second year she had been petrified for a few months and she never knew how much that had affected Ron. She, Ron, and Harry had grown a lot as friends that year.

In their third year Ron and she had their first big fight over a stupid cat. Crookshanks was deceased now but she had always loved that cat, even if Ron hated it. However, they forgave and forgot.

Year four at Hogwarts they started to realize that they were going to be more than friends. Ron had been jealous of her and Krum and she had been stupid enough not to realize that until it was too late. After she kissed Krum for the first time she felt strange around Ron for days. She had wanted to tell him but didn't know how he would react, so she decided to keep it a secret and eventually she stopped feeling weird about the whole thing.

Her biggest memory of her and Ron in year five was kissing him on the cheek before his first Quidditch match. Ginny had mocked her for it later, but she didn't regret it.

Their sixth year was the biggest stretch for their relationship. They had been feeling the tension between them for a little over two years and when Hermione finally got the courage to ask Ron to something - as a little more than friends - he said yes. She had been ecstatic until her heart was broken by seeing Ron with Lavender. She had been furious and got revenge by going out with Cormac McLggen. That made Ron so jealous and Hermione was pleased at that. Eventually they made up and helping Harry through his grief with Dumbledore only made them have a deeper bond.

When they went off with harry to look for Hourcrux's they had several moments when they had come close to kissing. It sounded so juvenile but Hermione knew it was true. When Ron ran out on her and harry, it cut her deeper than seeing him with lavender. At Hogwarts she was still able to see him and make sure he was okay, but when they were on their own he could have been dead for all she knew. Later that year they had their first kiss, it was the most amazing thing Hermione had ever experienced. Well, not counting what they had just done.

After the battle of Hogwarts Ron and Hermione never left each other's side. They were inseparable. They helped each other through everything; the grief of all those that had died, repairing the magic world to a working position, going to Australia and looking for Hermione's parents, and taking NEWT exams so they could get good positions in the magic world.

Those few years were when they truly fell in love truly became a couple. Everyone was shocked at how long it took them to get engaged, even Ron and Hermione themselves. It was even more of a shock at how long it had taken them to have sex, but Hermione always had boundaries and, though she really wanted to, never gave into Ron.

A while later Ron woke up. He didn't move because he thought Hermione was asleep (she didn't move because she didn't want to wake him up).

He was thinking about the same things when Hermione's alarm clock went off; it made them both jump. Hermione leapt out of bed and slapped the snooze button to make the thing stop wailing. She took a deep breath then turn it fully off before walking over to her chair and putting on her dressing gown. Ron was sitting up in the bed when she walked over and sat down next to him. He pulled her into his arms, but neither of them made eye contact.

They were both looking at the wall before Ron finally tried to say something,

"Er, so…?" he said it like a question.

"So?" Hermione parroted.

"I don't really know how to say this but… that was, Er…" Ron turned red and was thankful that Hermione couldn't see him.

Hermione nodded, unsure of what to say.

"Great?" he said.

She laughed making him angry, flushed, and embarrassed.

"Fine…" he mumbled and tried to get out of the bed.

"No Ron!" she was really laughing now, "I meant that it a good way! I agree with you, it was amazing."

"Then what are you laughing at?" muttered Ron, still upset.

This brought on a whole new round of giggles from Hermione but she spoke anyway,

"Well _now _I'm laughing because you're being absurd. But a moment ago I was laughing at how awkward it as to sit here, and how funny it was to actually say those things, I thought people only said that in books. Or movies. But I guess I was wrong!" she continued to laugh.

Ron, being totally puzzled by Hermione's mood decided to let out a chuckle to see if it would help her. Then he decided he really did need to get out of bed and get dressed. He tried to move and Hermione misinterpreted it,

"No Ron, really I'm sorry, you were amazing it's just… I don't know. Hormones or something."

"Er, thanks?" Ron let out a genuine chuckle now, "you were too. But really I need to go. I have to get showered and dressed then eat and go to work…"

"Work? Work!" Hermione cursed, "Can you go home and get ready? I need to shower here!"

"Yeah, I'll go."

Hermione gave him a quick peck before running into her bathroom to shower and get ready for the day. Ron collected his clothes and went home with a smile on his face.

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_So this chapter was just fun to write. Haha it was going to go into a Ginny thing but I thought I would just make a new chapter for that. Expect it very soon! Thanks, Lilly. _


	12. The Man that Came

***

Ginny was sitting in her office when the owl arrived.

Dear Ginny,

Well! I have had the best 24 hours anyone could ever have! We'll have to talk sometime. But for now I want to tell you what I found out about Harry's case. I think that the muggles that died all owed somebody money, (I'll tell you about how I know later) can you guess who they owed money to!? KINGSLEY'S secretary! And, Zachariah smith! Yeah I know! Ron, Rodney, and I are looking more into this today. I don't know how the little boy died (he couldn't have owed money, as he was very young) but I will cross that bridge when I come to it. I have to leave now but I thought I would give you something to think about today. Would you like to come over sometime so we can talk? If you're busy I can just write you an extended owl. Respond soon!

Love, Hermione.

Ginny read and reread the letter, and her mouth dropped. It all made sense, if the muggles owed money it would be a perfect motive to kill them… but why would smith and this other man she didn't know need muggle money? And why would it be such a big deal? Unless it was a very large amount of money… Ginny decided to respond to Hermione's letter saying she could come over tonight at seven o'clock for coffee and they could talk.

This was the first time Ginny had been into work for a few days and was missing Harry deeply. He was on house arrest and many, many special charms had been placed around the house so he couldn't get out.

Ginny sat and tried to think of what two wizard men would need muggle money for. She had no ideas when lunch came and she decided to go home and eat with harry. She apperated away and walked through the door calling,

"Harry?"

He didn't respond so Ginny started to make lunch and look for him when it was ready. She was just cutting bread when Harry came up from behind and pulled her into a hug.

"Hello," he said.

"Hi," Ginny laughed and turned around to face him and kissed him on the nose. Then she turned around to continue cooking their lunch. Harry walked across the room and leaned against the table.

"How was work?" he asked.

"Good…" she responded vaguely.

"Ginny…?" Harry questioned.

"I have something to tell you… but I'm trying to figure out how to say it…"

Harry's eyes widened and he leaned forward a few inches. Ginny put her head up in the air and sighed.

"Why is this such a big deal?" Harry said.

"Harry," Ginny said, taking his hand, "Hermione and Ron think they know who may have been the killer. They think they know his… _their…_ motives. All accept the little boy and Hermione said that…"

Harry's mouth dropped then spread into a wide smile. He laughed and hugged Ginny as hard as he could.

"Ginny! Why were you nervous to tell me that? That's wonderful! Who is it?"

"Zachariah Smith and Kinsley's secretary"

"What?" Harry snarled.

Ginny just nodded. Harry exploded.

"That bloody git! How the hell could they get away with that!?! I knew he didn't like me but that's no bloody reason that he should," Harry struggled to look for a word, "should, ruddy _condemn_ me! What an absolute prat! He is such a damn-"

"Harry! Shut the hell up! Somebody is at the door," Ginny said.

She walked over and opened the door. Outside of it was a man. He was wearing a very expensive looking emerald robe, dragon hide boots, and a hat that matched.

"Hello," said the man who uninvitingly walked in.

"Who the hell are you?" demanded Harry who was still angry.

"I'm Joseph. I don't think we've met." He extended his hand to harry who didn't take it.

"No, we haven't. What do you want? Joseph who?"

Joseph laughed,

"I thought I was going to be the one talking so much!"

Ginny was nervous. In fact, she was extremely nervous. She was getting so nervous she was about three degrees away from shaking. Ginny was not the nervous type either, but something was wrong with this man...

"Haha anyway…" he continued, "what I want is some information. That's all. If you cooperate this should go smoothly."

Harry started incredulously at him,

"WHO THE BLOODY HELL DO YOU THINK YOU ARE??" he shouted, "You come into my house and tell me to 'cooperate'?? What the hell do you really want?!"

Ginny put a hand on Harry's shoulder but he shrugged it off.

"Well truthfully, I want money. But that shouldn't be an issue if you give me the information I need."

Harry was going to yell something else at the man but he put a hand up to silence harry,

"I want to know how to penetrate the Department of Mysteries without getting caught. I know you have done it and I need something the ministry has in there."

"Why should I tell you that?" Harry asked.

"Because if you don't I shall kill you. "Harry gave a blank stare to the man at that; Harry didn't believe he would but it had also been a while since he had gotten a death threat.

"You don't believe me," the man crooned, "well would you believe me if I was holding a knife to your pretty little wife's throat?"

"Why would you bother to catch me? You could kill me from where you're standing if you really wanted to. Have you heard of a wand?" Ginny asked sarcastically.

"Ginny!" harry hushed

"And why can't you figure out how to get in by yourself. If you were smart you could've figured that out. Also, if you were smart, you wouldn't have come here seeing as Harry is a fully qualified auror and even if he wasn't look at his history! He was fighting a wizard with ten times your power when he was only eleven!"

"Ohh, spunky! I like her, you have good taste," the man complimented harry.

"You bastard-"Ginny tried to lung for him but Harry held her back. This made Joseph laugh even harder and Ginny and Harry even madder.

"Now," he said, "as much as I am amused by you two I am getting rather annoyed. Zachariah, um, you." He gestured to two men who quickly moved up behind Harry and Ginny and poked their wands into the couples back.

"Now you tell me how you got into the department of mysteries when you were only fifteen or, you give me the 10,000 galleons I want."

"10,000 galleons??" Harry and Ginny said.

"Well I get the money either way. But I need one of the things I asked you for."

"And if we don't?"

"Didn't I say I would kill you? But I won't kill you right away. I'll stay here for a few days until you give in. We can lock you up somewhere."

Ginny and Harry denied the man his information and they were thrown down into the dark cellar without wands. The doors were locked and they were given no food or water to 'persuade' them a little more.

***

Six hours later nothing had changed.

Harry had tried to get some light and even as the great wizard he was it was difficult to do without a wand. Ginny also tried but with no luck.

"Damnit…" Harry would say at regular intervals. "Okay, the next time they come down we overpower them. Be ruthless, no excuses. I can't believe that git Zachariah is up there…"

Harry's rambling annoyed Ginny and she had taken to searching blindly through the basement. She was walking blindly towards the back (she thought) when a beam of light from the open filled the darkness.

"Don't move. I have a wand." Smith's voice said.

Ginny, who could see Harry's face in the light widened her eyes and he nodded, now was the time to take action.

"Where are you?!" Smith demanded. Harry vigorously shook his head and Ginny rolled her eyes,

_I know!_ She mouthed.

_On three _he mouthed, _one… two… _he held up his fingers.

Zachariah walked around the corner and harry gave his last command,

"Three!"

He and Ginny lunged from either sided of the room onto smith, Ginny stuffed her hand into his mouth and Harry wrestled the wand away. Smith tried to bite Ginny and she flinched but punched him with the other hand before he could scream. Living with six older brothers had made her tough as nails, and a pretty good fighter.

Harry pressed the wand to Smith's throat.

"Everything alright?" Joseph yelled from above.

"You _will_ tell him everything is alright" Harry snarled and jabbed the wand harder into Smith's throat.

"Fine!" Smith yelled. Harry and Ginny pulled him over to the wall and Harry asked,

"Why do you need to go into the department of Mysteries?"

"How did you get to work on Harry's case?"

"How did you even pass the exams to get into the court?"

"What does 'Joseph' want?"

"Let him tell you that himself," Smith smiled.

Ginny and Harry turned around to see the grinning face of Joseph,

"Miss me?" he said.


	13. What the Man Said

Ginny and Harry stood with their backs pressed against the wall of the living room. They had Smith and the nameless man standing with their wands pointed at their heads and Joseph was pacing at the other end of the room. They had been prohibited to speak but they still had about a billion questions.

"Can we talk yet?" Ginny complained. The nameless man standing next to her jabbed her with his wand.

She could see that being held hostage by Zachariah Smith was really irritating Harry. He was holding his head a few inches higher than the normal position and his lips were pursed. He had his back leaning against the wall and his arms were crossed over his chest. Ginny tried to comfort him silently, but had received a painful jab in her side for doing so.

"When are you going to answer us?" Harry asked.

"When I'm good and bloody ready too!" Joseph responded.

Harry pursed his lips. Being wandless was a pain for Harry and he was getting close to resorting to physical blows. Ginny was trying to apperate away but when the ministry had put Harry on house arrest they had put many magical imprisonments on the house and nobody could apperate in or out. They even put a charm on it so that Harry could not walk out of the gate surrounding the yard. It was going to be the threshold of the house but Ginny had begged and they changed it to the fence.

"Alright. We can only keep you two a little longer without anyone noticing. Its six thirty and soon enough somebody is going to come wondering why you didn't come back to work," He said to Ginny.

"Should a thought that through shouldn't you've?" Ginny muttered and the man gave her dagger eyes. Suddenly her eyes lit up; Ginny had remembered Hermione's letter. She looked at Harry with her green eyes wide; he looked back at her blankly.

_What? _He mouthed.

_Hermione! _She mouthed back.

Harry still didn't understand and Ginny remember that she hadn't told him that Hermione was coming over later. She felt very ditzy for not remembering it sooner.

"Quit the communication!" Joseph snapped, "Alright. You tell me, _NOW_, how to get into the department of Mysteries and we'll leave you be."

"You tell us why you want in and maybe we will tell you." Harry said.

Joseph cursed; he didn't like being ordered around, even though that's what his job was. All he could think of was how much he needed to leave with the information but he thought it would be best to tell Harry his story so Harry would give him the information.

"Okay, I owe some money. I tried to get into a higher position in the ministry by bribing my head of department. I was in the department of Magical Law and Order. That's how I met Smith here," Joseph gestured to Smith, "but the man I bribed jipped me. He said if I paid him the money he would get me into a position where I would have been in a likely candidate to become the next minister. However he didn't, and then he started to make me pay blackmail, I was already in a high position so I had something to lose if word got out. I was paying over two hundred galleons a month for about three years. And then I had to pay three thousand eight-hundred galleons to start with, do the math.

"So finally I get so much in dept I ran away. I ran to Germany for two years and hid there. I stayed with quite a few families and I learned a few things about how to get out of a sticky situation. I was running out of things to do, place's to be. I even owed money to some people in Germany but it wasn't nearly as much as I owed the man who was blackmailing me.

"I decided to go to America. It was even farther away and I could get a fresh start… so I thought. When I was living in Germany I was living in a very secluded part and I wasn't aware that my old employer had ratted me out. But his story was that I had robbed him personally and that's why I owed the ten grand.

"The first wizarding community I walked into I was immediately recognized. I apperated away and decided I needed to change. I was in a wizarding town right outside New York. I apperated into Ohio, then Nebraska, Colorado, and eventually I made my way into a large wizarding town outside San Francisco.

"I went into many muggle houses and I stole from them. That's why I murdered those people. They were my first few robberies and they figured out who I was. But I did think some things through, they were all British tourists. I wanted it that way so if I needed to take care of them when I went back to London they wouldn't be half a world away. I lured them onto the cruise ship because I was getting paranoid that they would tell someone about me. They even knew my name... with the money I paid a plastic surgeon and changed my face to the point where I would be unrecognizable."

Ginny and Harry's eyes widened.

"I could've just stayed in America and made a new start there. But I missed England and the British Ministry of Magic is the most powerful in the world; that was my main motive for coming back. I was still hungry for power; I still wanted to control the ministry, I wanted to control the wizarding world. I have so many ideas that would benefit every wizard and witch in the world. Blood status isn't important to me, that's why I'm different than every other wizard looking for power.

"To make a long story short I came back to the Ministry. I got a job in a different because even though my face was different my personality hadn't changed. I was worried that if I got to close to my original boss he would recognize me. I received a position in Department of Magical Protection as an aurors assistant. As much as it bothered me I pretended I was egger about the job. I even faked results as a field worker so I could get higher up on the totem pole. My effort was recognized and I got promotions quickly.

"Eventually I became Kingsley's assistant and I was ecstatic. I was thrilled beyond anything you could imagine. I worked harder for him than I ever had. It was the hardest I have ever worked in my life.

"Then, the downside came. Because I was so good Kingsley started to drag me to his meeting so I could keep notes and handle his papers and whatnot. Guess who was at the meeting? My old boss. The one I owed ten thousand galleons to. At first nothing noticeable happened. Then, he started to notice some of my tendencies. Like how I whenever I know the answer to a question I always give it, or that I always sit in a certain way when I am upset. I think he even noticed my facial expressions.

"One day he sent me a letter saying he needed to have a private meeting and dinner with Kingsley. He wrote the he was bringing his secretary and Kingsley should bring me. I received instructions on where and what time to meet. I was careless, I made a mistake. I figured that with Kingsley and the other man there my old boss wouldn't say anything. I figured that it would be fine, that I was being smart in going instead of making up some excuses about not coming. I was wrong; my old boss out smarted Me." josephs said bitterly, he continued,

"He sent Kingleys a letter saying he was 'terribly sorry but he couldn't make their appointment,' and that he had 'already alerted your assistant'. He lied, but that was his plan. I went to the restaurant as scheduled and we met. He pulled me behind the building and demanded to know who I was. When I pretended I knew nothing, he got angry. He hit me and broke my new nose.

"Eventually he got the story out of me and demanded that I pay him within the next year. I was scared, he threatened me with some things that are almost too gruesome to imagine. He knew how to do them too; he had other men that tried to not pay him back his money.

"I decided that by steeling information from the ministry I could sell it on the black market and pay back all the money. The best place to do that would be the Department of Mysteries. If I did it correctly nobody would ever know it was me and I could continue to work my way up to Minister.

"I contacted Smith and he agreed to help me. He brought this man along because of his brute strength. But they have both been in similar situations. He got me the information on you and I figured I could frame you. It would be perfect. The newspapers would be all over you and they wouldn't even think to _look_ at me."

Ginny and Harry didn't know what to say. Harry knew time was running out before things got sticky but he didn't know what to do.

"Why didn't you stay in America?" he asked.

"I told you that stupid-"

Harry tuned the man out and tried to communicate to Ginny what he was about to do; she got the hint.

Harry took a deep breath and smashed his elbow into Smith's stomach. He grabbed the wand while Smith fell over, clutching his stomach and gasping for breath. Ginny, being quick on the update punched the other man in the mouth and grabbed his wand. Harry ran over to Joseph and pressed the wand into his throat and Ginny put the freezing charm on the other two men.

"Give us our wands" Harry growled.

The man staked to say no but Harry grabbed his shirt and shook him.

"Kitchen cabinet" he murmured.

"Ginny!" harry snapped and she ran to get the wands. Once Harry and Ginny had their wands in their hands, Harry started to speak to Joseph,

"Listen, we're going to alert-"he was cut short but Joseph punching him in the stomach and drawing out his own wand. Ginny screamed as the two men pointed their wands at one another.

"Flipendo!" Joseph yelled, but instead of aiming towards Harry he hit Ginny. Ginny flew backwards and slammed into the wall, Harry roared.

"Crucio!" he yelled, and watched the man writher in pain.

"Stupefy!" Joseph cried. He missed.

"Rictusempra!" Harry yelled, thinking of the first spell he could.

Between wheezing gasps of laughter Joseph hollered,

"Tarantallegra!" and Harry began to dance around the room. While he was still dancing Joseph gained control, he took one look at Ginny who – while conscious – was in too much pain to move. He yelled,

"Serpensortia!" and a giant, black, Cobra emerged from the tip of his wand. It started to move, slowly, across the room. Then it started to slither faster and faster. It was flying across the room now, Ginny yelled,

"Impedimenta!" it slowed down,

"Diffindo" she screeched. A big red gash appeared in the side of the snake, blood oozed out but it kept coming.

"Avis!" she yelled one last thing and red birds shot out of her wand towards the snake's face. The snake stopped in its tracks and engorged one of the red birds in one bit. Then it decided to continue after Ginny until it heard the voice.

"_Siii… see ashna..." _the snake turned and looked at Harry. Then it turned to look at Joseph, Harry nodded and said,

"_Gha!" _the snake started to slither quickly across the room, it took the man about half a second to realize what was going to happen,

"Obliviate! Obliviate! Obliviate!" he screamed and pointed his wand blindly in every direction. The snake had been blown up but in doing so he had hit the floor, wall, and ceiling.

Harry threw himself over Ginny to protect her from the pieces of flying rubble. Smith and the other men had large pieces of debris fall on them; their eyes widened but couldn't move to protect themselves. Joseph covered his head with his hands, but he got the easy end of things.

Joseph laughed,

"Crucio!" he yelled and Harry's body thrashed around over the torn up ground, he screamed in pain. Ginny clutched her heart, she felt as thought it was going to be ripped away from her; watching Harry in so much pain was too much.

"Stop it!" she screamed, "stop it!" her voice cracked, Joseph just laughed. He was just going to double, maybe triple the pain Harry was in when an unidentified voice called,

"Obliviate!" The kitchen door flew off its hinges, and hit the wall nearest to it. Ron walked through with Hermione and Rodney close behind him.

Joseph's attention had been taken off Harry just long enough for him to stand up and yell,

"Stupefy!"

Joseph body fell to the floor like a dead fish. Harry and Ron rushed to him and pulled him up to a sitting position. Harry grabbed his wand and Ron muttered a spell that tied magically enforced ropes around him.

Meanwhile, Hermione had run over to Ginny and asked her best girlfriend if she was alright (about four times in under a minute) and then walked over to Smith and the other man. She had Rodney help her pull them into the same sitting position as Joseph and he preformed the same charm Ron had.

They alerted the authorities, and in two hour all three men were sitting in a holding cell waiting to go to Azkaban.

Harry and Ginny filled Kingsley and a few other men and women in on what Joseph had said to them. Kingsley was ashamed to not have noticed this but he was reassured nobody would have seen this coming. Ron, Hermione, and Rodney also contributed their part of the story by telling about the night at the bar, and how they came to think Smith was involved.

So everyone fell back into their old routines. Well, for about a day. Then Hermione received a frantic letter at work saying,

_Dearest Hermione, _

_I know you must be overwhelmed by what has happened in the past two weeks or so (I know I have,) but you are a bride to be and as the mother of your future husband (I am so thrilled for you two by the way,) we have quite a few things to discuss; A wedding is a lot of work. We need to talk flowers, invitations, food, location, clothing… I have more but I'm running out of ink. You were raised as a muggle but I am convinced the ceremonies cannot be too terribly different. And of course we'll need to involve your parents. Get back to me quickly and we can have this all figured out._

_Lots of love,_

_Mrs. Weasley_

Hermione showed this to Ginny, who laughed and said,

"It was worse for me, I was living with her." They both laughed, and Ginny continued, "Well at least now we know all is right in the world. Harry isn't in prison, nobody is being murdered, and my mother is being a nutcase."

The girls laughed and began to discuss the wedding. After all, Mrs. Weasley was right, a wedding is a lot of work.

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_Hey guys! Final chapter coming up! Thank you for being supportive of my story! Please tell me what you think about the ending! Love, Lilly _


	14. The Last Chapter

Hermione stood in her best girlfriend's bedroom, looking a mirror.

_This is like déjà vu... _she thought.

She was wearing an incredibly elegant white wedding gown; it was Victorian age looking and it was made entirely of a very luxurious silk. She wore a bolero jacket with three quarter length sleeves (she had specifically requested it that way, as platform nine and three quarters is what lead her to Ron and the entire wizarding world). Without the bolero jacket it was a sleeveless dress and went touched the floor. Hermione didn't want a train, as she thought they were impractical. Metallic rhinestones lined the bodice of the dress and collar and cuffs of the jacket. When Hermione saw it, it became _the dress. _It became _her dress._i

Her makeup was all very natural, very neutral. Her hair was curled and held together with so much hairspray (magically enforced of course, for especially hard to hold hair) that she doubted it would ever by bushy again. Her nails had lovely French tips and her hands had been messaged (an idea Hermione thought was ridiculous but Ginny and Mrs. Weasley insisted) to the point where like looked like they could belong to a model out of _Vogue. _

The bridesmaids wore very plain, yet elegant dresses. They all had a different color; sky blue for Ginny, Purple for Mary (a friend from work,) and rose for a dear cousin of hers. Hermione had chosen these colors according to what she thought suited those best, the rose was going to go to Ginny, but it clashed with her hair.

"It's time, love" Hermione's father said to her. Her mother broke out in tears.

"Mum! Are you well?" Hermione said bewilderedly to her mother.

"I'm f-fine dear…" her mother said, "just h-happy…" Ginny and Hermione exchanged a look which was risky; they didn't want to burst out in laughter. Once everyone had gained control Ginny looked at Hermione and said,

"You look beautiful." A chorus of agreement followed.

They bridal party marched downstairs and the music started to play. The music started to play and the bridesmaids went down the aisle. When her time came, Hermione's father looked at her and asked her if she was ready. She shook her head.

They began the slow procession down the aisle, all eyes upon the gorgeous girl in white. Hermione blushed, and then looked up at the beautiful smiling redhead that was waiting at the end of the long walk. Waiting for _her. _Hermione beamed, and Ron smiled back.

Ron and Hermione hardly heard their vows; they were too busy looking at each other. But the priest kept it simple, he said the traditional vows but before that he read a passage of scripture and gave a little history on Ron and Hermione. He talked about the first time they had seen each other, their petty fights through the years, and the things that made them stronger as a couple. When Ron was told to, "kiss the bride" he grabbed Hermione and pulled her down into an old-fashioned-movie kiss. The crowd laughed and cheered and Hermione came out of it flushed.

After the ceremony the yard of the burrow was – for the third time- transferred into a beautiful wedding reception area. The newlyweds were pulled into hugs by family and friends, then they went to say hello to everyone they had not been embraced by. When the time came for the first dance, they were breathless. But somehow they managed to have a tiny conversation.

"Are you enjoying yourself?" Ron whispered into Hermione's ear.

"Yes, I am." Hermione smiled, "are you?"

"Now I am. Now that it's just you and I, I was getting annoyed at having to talk to everyone. "

Hermione smiled and kissed him, which set off a frenzy of camera flashes.

"I am a bit disappointed you would put on a garter. Ginny did it." Ron said, Hermione gave him a stern look and he said apologetically,

"But I know what you said…" they held each other for a few more minutes, and were both sad when the song ended. Ron danced with his mother and Hermione danced with her father. Hermione danced with the Weasley and Ron danced with the Grangers. Everyone danced with everyone and when Ron and Hermione finally made it back into each other's arms they were seriously exhausted.

"Ugh, I exhausted. But I love this. I absolutely love this." Hermione laughed. Ron laughed and spun Hermione around and he kissed her on the forehead.

"It's strange, to think of all that has gone on in the past seven months and here we are. I mean, Harry had a legal problem, and a 'getting killed' thing for the first time in years. We, er…" Hermione blushed but Ron smiled at the memory (it hadn't happened since, so he was looking forward to later this evening). "And now we're married! It just seems like a lot…"

So the night went on. Hermione threw the bouquet (Luna Lovegood caught it), Ron and Hermione cut the cake, nothing went wrong. It was the wedding that Hermione had wanted, totally perfect.

Finally it was time to leave to go to the honeymoon. Ginny had chosen a very honeymoonish yellow dress for Hermione to wear on the flight (It was Ron's first time on an airliner, and he was getting jittery). Her hair was still curly as could be when the couple apperated away with rice being thrown at them.

Hermione guided Ron thought the airport and four hours later they were sitting in their terminal. The plan was to go to Greece, Rome, then down to Italy and back up to France. They would spend a week in each so about a month away from home.

The airplane pulled into the gate and Hermione grabbed Ron's hand. He gave her a nervous look and muttered something about not having much faith in muggle inventions. This made Hermione laugh, which reminded her of one of the reasons she had fallen in love with him.

They got into their seats on the airport and Ron started to squeeze Hermione's hand hard.

"Ron, I'm here. I'm not going to leave you, you'll be fine." She said.

"I know love," Ron smiled, "that's what's gotten us this far. And I will never leave you, I love you."

Hermione blushed and smiled,

"I love you too."

i Go to .com/wc/fash/dressimages/Fashion_BridalGown_HDBA_456_ if you want to see

a dress similar to what I am imagining!

.org/images/Alfred-Angelo-Bridesmaids/Alfred-Angelo-Bridesmaids-6125-discount-gowns-world-wide-shipping_ (for bridesmaid dresses)

_Hey everyone! Wow(: I hoped you liked that! that was the end): I hope you had as much fun reading it as I did writing it. Thank you so much for the positive feedback and be sure to keep a heads up for my next story, which should be updated in a week or so. Like I said thank you sooo much and make sure to tell me what you think!:D _

_Love, Lilly_


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